Dear Professor Catalan,
After searching for a scientist’s perspective on the current crisis in Catalunya, I happened across the Científics per la Independència blog and your recent post Carta a Col•leagues Estrangers. In Scotland, we have always experienced a strong affinity with the people of Catalunya, as we have the same desires for the right to decide our own future. Furthermore, Catalunya’s support during our independence referendum in 2014 was overwhelming and we felt a real sense of alliance.
With this in mind, reading your article brought home how important it is to put pressure on our governments to uphold democratic process and ensure the rights of voters. It is my belief that scientists, regardless of any extraneous factors, share the common goal of improving, furthering and sharing knowledge and as such, it is our responsibility to support each other in order to uphold these values. Therefore, it is my hope that the scientific community will unit to pressure our respective governments to ensure a just vote in Catalunya and that Catalan’s may engage in the democratic process in safety.
The Scottish National Party today voted unanimously to support Catalunya in your endeavour to choose your own future, however I will be writing to my local political representatives and encourage my colleagues to do the same, to ensure that the motion that was voted on today is put into action.
In solidarity and with warmest regards,
Jamie Ferguson
PhD Student
Multimodal Interaction Group
School of Computing Science
The University of Glasgow, charity number SC004401